September 9, 2015: Visiting Colleges and Diversity Fly-In Programs

posted Sep 15, 2015, 10:02 AM by Kristin Hannon

College Readiness NewsletterSeptember 9, 2015

Weekly College Update

Dear Senior Thunderbirds, Bulldogs, Snow Leopards, and Huskies,

Close your eyes and imagine yourself starting college next fall. What’s the picture that comes to your mind? Do you see yourself sitting with a book on a bench surrounded by ivy-covered brick buildings? Standing in a football stadium with thousands of cheering fans? Discussing great books with your professor in a small seminar class?

One of the best ways to find out if a college is the right fit for you is to go and visit! You can research all you want about a school, but sometimes you need to go and see for yourself if it feels right or not. For this reason, many colleges offer weekend programs where you can go and spend a couple of days seeing what the student life is like at that school.

This week’s topic is visiting colleges and diversity fly-in programs.

Do you want to visit schools but can’t afford it? There are programs that can help! Diversity fly-in programs are opportunities offered by colleges all across the country where they will help pay for diverse, first generation high school seniors to come and visit their school. You can find lists of colleges that offer fly-in programs on sites like getmetocollege and collegegreenlight. Some of these programs require applications and the deadlines are approaching, so get started soon!

If you’re planning to visit a school, there are lots of things to consider, such as taking a tour, asking the right questions, and maybe even setting up an interview with an admissions counselor. Visiting a college campus is one way to “demonstrate interest” in a school, which is a factor that admissions counselors consider, so be sure you let them know you were there! Some helpful resources to plan your college visit can be found on College Board Big Future as well as Summit’s College Visit Guide.

Finally, take advantage of any opportunity to talk to college representativesat college fairs, online, and on your own Summit campus. We offer college representative visits at our schools throughout the fall. Check the calendar on the home page at college.summitps.org to find out when reps are coming to your campus and go talk to them. It’s a great way to learn about schools and get your questions answered.

Questbridge National College MatchThe QuestBridge National College Match is a college and scholarship application process that helps outstanding low-income high school seniors gain admission and full four-year scholarships to the nation's most selective colleges. Applications are due September 28th.

Susan Steelman Bragato ScholarshipWho can apply: High school seniors graduating from a California Charter Schools Association member school (like Summit!) and demonstrating financial need.Amount of the award: $2,000Information/Application: http://charterconference.org/2016/awards/ssbscholarship.phpDeadline: October 9, 2015

Coca-Cola ScholarshipWho can apply: High school seniors with 3.0 GPA or higherAmount of the award: $20,000Information/Application: http://www.coca-colascholars.org/Deadline: October 31, 2015

Asian & Pacific Islander American Scholarship FundWho can apply: Asian American and Pacific Islander high school seniorsAmount of the award: variesInformation/Application: https://secure.apiasf.org/Deadline: January 8, 2016

Gates Millennium ScholarsWho can apply: African American, American Indian, Asian Pacific Islander American, Hispanic American high school seniors with minimum 3.3 GPAAmount of the award: full cost of college education! Information/Application: Gates Millennium Scholars ProgramDeadline: January 13, 2016

All Access Free Online College Fair

Do you have questions for college admissions counselors? Here's your chance to ask the experts! From 7am-7pm on Thursday, September 10th, you can live chat with representatives from over 100 colleges and universities across the country. Find out more about their schools, ask questions about your application, and more. Plus, if you virtually visit at least five different colleges, you get entered into a drawing to win a $5,000 scholarship. Find out more here: http://www.collegeweeklive.com/event-schedule/all-access-september-2015